With Urbosa's mood sullied, and the rest of the Company either uneasy or wholly indifferent to the current state of emotions, Zelda had taken only a quite look toward the waning sunlight to make the call to remain atop Satori for the night, simply to progress delicately enough in these early stages. She had described it to Link while setting up camp as a cross-country runner stretching before a sprint, and although Link remained completely indifferent himself, probably even wishing the troupe simply finished their job so that he could return to his normal existence, he managed to keep his thoughts merely to himself.

With the night sky taking its course, the light strokes of flames billowing up from the campfire reflectively bounced atop the crimson skin of Mipha as she sat in quiet watch, wielding her picture book that Zelda had given along her lap, smiling softly to herself as her eyes scrolled along the pages. As her fingers carefully turned the page, a smile crossing ever so gently across her face while her free hand reached up to hold onto the end of her ruby-like dorsal fin, running her thumb along its tender skin as she followed along with the story within her book.

Every now and then, her eyes fluttered over toward the small lake that shared the peak with the Company, the soft pink leaflets glittering in her peripheral vision as they somehow floated along the top of the still waters. Such a sight gave her an itch to swim for a bit, though her own sense of duty prevented her from doing so, a mischievous grin crossing her face as she thought, also, of her own gleeful squeals were she to indulge. Surely, it would wake the others.

Her lithe skin crawled as the sounds of crinkling movement arose behind her, the stroking of her fin casing as she turned to examine the sleeping bodies at her back, finding Link working his way to his feet, rubbing the butt of his palm across his eyes, strolling sleeplessly over toward the quiet flames, earning a nervous blush from Mipha, knowing what was to be said, already.

Sure enough, concealing a yawn, Link muttered as he strode closer, "Shoulda woken me up to take over lookout."

"My apologies," she replied with a furtive smile, "I suppose I just lost track of the time reading."

Link nodded, "Ah, that fairy tale book Zelda mentioned."

He grunted while he stretched, standing by the fire while his arms reached up toward the stars, curling backwards while Mipha watched in amusement. Letting loose a quieted sigh of contentment, Link returned his attention to Mipha while he took a seat by the fire as well.

"I wouldn't have thought we had that many stories, and that's coming from a knight; all we used to do was tell stories," Link admitted surely, shrugging, "It's good you're enjoying yourself, though."

Mipha smiled, bowing her head, "However many there are, they are quite enjoyable. Your fables often focus on values so foreign to us Zora. Mortality, it seems, features far more prominently. Probably given your life-spans are much shorter. Avarice is another theme that we don't often encounter in our stories. Fate, finding somebody- those, too, might be a result of the fleeting nature of a Hylian's life."

Link grinned, "You make it sounds as though a hundred years is just a moment in time."

"Well…" Mipha averted her eyes, casting her assuring smile toward the ground, "Maybe compared to a Zora it could be. Everything is so…magnified by you Hylians."

"Is that true?"

Mipha nodded, "I mean, by the time you experience puberty, our children are merely popping out from the cleansing waters after spending years as tadpoles, their fins all aflutter as they rush around, as unsure of their bodies as they are the world around them."

Link's head turned toward her as he caught her attempting to smother a giggle, her temporal keel fins at the sides of her head draping low to inadvertantly cover her, though her arm reaching toward her face gave it away, alongside the cautious vibrations running throughout her body.

"My brother," she managed between intermittent gasps of gleeful giggles, "You remember-"

"Sidon," Link nodded.

"Sidon, yes," Mipha confirmed lightly, just managing to control her elation, "He would get so charged up with whatever zeal comes across the heart of a child; then would dash off, only to trip on his dorsal fin, hitting the ground with a hopeful enough spirit that he would simply hurry back to his feet, only noting the mistake long enough to simply carry his fin in his arm."

Such recounting only forced her to giggle some more, her flighty breaths even causing Link to smile mildly himself, thinking back on those days, before his knighthood, where life alongside his mother seemed so much easier. Not only did Mipha evoke such memories, but her very behavior, how light and optimistic she often came across, only reminded Link more of that childish point in time, one so deprived in his adulthood.

"He was a mess, wasn't he?" Link acknowledged, "Does it just come with royal blood to want to solve every little thing that might just be a problem?"

Sighing deeply to regain her breath, Mipha leaned back into her relaxed posture, which seemed rather rigid to anybody not raised as she'd been, shrugging subtly, "It might just be the ones more willing to put their people above themselves that make for better leaders."

"I don't know about that," Link muttered in reply, slowly tilting himself sideways before stretching out his arms, lying there on his side with his head propped up by his forearm, "Wasn't too many kings ago the Kingdom sought to kill off the Zoras that had settled in the wetlands."

Mipha's eyes fluttered toward him, "Depending on how you look at it, he very well could have been putting his people before himself. Ensuring them land to spite his reputation."

A quiet Link lowered his gaze for only a brief moment before turning toward Mipha incredulously, "You, a Zora, are gonna look at it in such a way?"

"No, but it could have been the case, regardless of how I, myself, understand it," Mipha answered with a twinge of light in her voice, "Those were dark times for my people, but- It's folly to ignore what others believe. That's partially why I joined this Company."

She smiled, raising her book up, "This might have been the rest of the reason."

"No kidding," he replied with a shake of the head at how easily she'd accounted for an event far closer to her lifetime than his own.

The Zora chuckled lightly as silence began to seep into the air around them, Mipha's attention gradually returning to her book while Link watched the flames before him, his eyes trailing up along their licking tails before sometimes catching the stars above, so endlessly assembled within the heavens, as preordained as his very existence.

"Damn it," he sighed in sudden exasperation, catching Mipha's face as she turned to watch him curiously, "That bird got my mind all caught up on stories and stuff."

Mipha's lips curled into a grin, "Is that a bad thing?"

"When you've heard 'em all a thousand times," Link explained as troublesome as it was to him, pushing himself back up into a seated position, "Seriously, when you're out on patrol, these days, how much time can honestly be spent doing much else?"

"Not much, I'd imagine," Mipha answered with a smile, only allowed to do so as Link was looking away.

She so enjoyed seeing him in any sort of reverie, even if it was him being riled up as he was now. He was so emotionless at times, she knew; it meant a great deal to her that he was able to express himself in any such way in only her presence.

"Perhaps I could alleviate your troubles with a story of my own," Mipha offered, bowing her head as she earned Link's stare while clearing her throat, "Once, our people lived within a mountain, right? Thousands of years ago- so long ago, the world had shifted into such a foreign-looking land compared to this one- Hylia hadn't even allowed herself to become known to the people of Hyrule. So lost were my people at the time, we found a fish far larger than the others, finding it to be seen as a tremendous sign from the heavens above! The Zora people of the time immediately filled that fish with food aplenty, treating him as though he were a messenger of a heavenly deity! So massive, he grew, until he swam up to be fed one day and WHAMO! got stuck on the shallow earth just beside our home at the time!"

The story obviously amusing her, Mipha covered her mouth once again to remain cautious of the others, "It's said they even crafted an alter before him, as they were unable to push him back into the waters! That's just wild, isn't it?! A fish god?!"

Her smile immediately faded as she noticed Link's own laughter, the Hylian having buried his face into the crick of his arm, leading to a distressed exclaimation from Mipha, "H-Hey!"

"Sorry," Link managed with a humored start, "It's just- I mean, it's pretty silly, don't you think?"

Mipha pouted her lips critically, "You're happy that Lord Wabbu-Wabbu isn't here to-"

"Pfft!" Link instantly hid his face once again for the others' sake, earning the ire of Mipha's droll stare, "We might be better off sticking to the ones in your book, at least while the others are sleeping. You wanna read us one?"

At that, Mipha's eyes went wide, her rueful expression immediately warping into one of intense embarrassment as she instantly yanked her head away, "N-N-No! I-I wouldn't w-want to mess it up!"

"Mess up a- You okay?" Link wondered curiously, "I've never seen a Zora's fins shiver like th-"

"H-Hey!" she demanded, "Q-Quit staring!"

Link couldn't help but grin at her rampant nervousness, obeying her demand as he surrendered his attention from her, doing his best to keep his amused chuckling to himself. For her own part, Mipha's nerves certainly were aquiver at such a request, her mind swirling uncertainly as she weighed her next words, certainly now that Link had dropped the issue, and conversation. Her heart tugged for a moment. He had exposed himself, somewhat; might she need to reciprocate the thought.

Her eyes fluttered sidelong, watching Link adjusting his position before leaning back, clutching the dirt behind him as he stared up into the stars, perhaps thinking of those same old tales he'd been thinking of earlier. His mind was off in another world, Mipha could tell, a whimpering glimmer in her heart pressing her to bring his mind back unto her.

"I-" she stammered weakly, turning Link's eyes back onto her curiously, "I, uh- I can't…read Hylian."

Link's face remained unchanged amidst the ashamed blush that overtook Mipha's own expression, his eyes narrowing knowingly as he replied kindly, "That explains your love of our picture books, then."

"Yes…" Mipha admitted weakly, "It's not something- For somebody expected to be so regal, or at the very least, an ambassador of sorts, I- it's a bit embarrassing."

Link's face spun, "Wait, so when Revali asked you to read Zelda's map-?"

Mipha felt her stomach churn nervously as she recalled that moment, quickly burying her face in her arms as she answered, "I- I made that name up, yes... Zelda must have thought I was such a fool…"

"No…" Link answered with a soft sort of grin, "She played along all the same, probably to save you the embarrassment, which, on that front, sorry for insisting."

"N-No, you're fine!" Mipha assured hurriedly, breaking her face away from her hands and darting her worried eyes toward the Hylian, as though Link apologizing only for her sake was somewhat offensive, "I- It was bound to come up at some point."

Link shrugged, betraying his smile as he worked his way up to his feet, "Still, I'm sorry. If you'd like, in penance, I'd be happy to teach you."

"Wha- Wha- Wha-," Mipha sounded in the fashion of a repeating record, "N- N- No, I wouldn't dare be such a burden to any-"

"It's no burden," Link shrugged, "I write in my journal almost daily, or at least, I did. It's second nature to me by now. My mother figured I should be literate if I were to become as great a knight as she and my father."

Mipha continued to resist behind a nervous voice, "I- W- I-"

Merely chuckling all the same, Link carefully fell to sit beside her, forcing a furious rushing of blood to course throughout the Zora's body at the thought of being so close to this man. This man whose spirit had captivated her so long ago. This man who, as if fate had willed it, grown as such only after she had begged for him to return to her home as a man taller than she. Before she could catch up to the moment, her mind having grown rather fried, she snapped awake as Link pulled the picture book gently away from her, resting one half along his own leg so that its rested, shared, between the two of them.

"Do you mind if I write in your book? I haven't my journal on me," Link asked sincerely, receiving only a short and quick nod from the Zora.

He grinned at how proper she appeared to be, pulling a pencil from his pocket and drawing a Hylian symbol, Mipha's attention and focus gradually enough catching on, "It's just a syllabary; nothing too complicated, especially since you're already able to speak it. It's just a matter of associating sounds to characters, I suppose."

Writing rather delicately in what might as well have simply been scrawl to Mipha, Link constructed a few symbols and pointed them out attentively, "Z, O, R, A. Zora, see?"

"I- I really don't," Mipha admitted.

Grinning, Link affirmed, "No worries; I won't ask you to write a book or anything. I'll leave something like a list of all the symbols and- Sorry, I know nothing of your Zora script, or I'd translate it for you, but hey, this is how I learned."

"With a burgeoning mind," Mipha curled her lips distastefully, "I'm quite older than you, you know."

"Then you know of determination," Link confirmed with a smirk, "Trust me, you'll get it. You just have to- There."

He brought his finger up as Mipha's eyes narrowed expectantly, his lone finger sliding along the page, "M, I, P, H, A. There's your name in Hylian. And there…is… D, A, R, U, K- Daruk. There's Zelda's, Urbosa's, the bird's. You've got your whole Company on here. Might be a good start."

Link readied his pencil to be returned to his pocket while Mipha's face fell sadly, a silent, lost feeling crossing her lips as she bit at them, nervously, "Uh- What about… your name..?"

"Mine?" Link laughed, "Sorry, my Lady, but I serve Princess Zelda only in the most cursory of instances. I'm not fit for this Company- you've no need for one so set into the life of a knight and nothing more."

Mipha's eyes darted away in aversion, "I mean… I do need practice, don't I?"

Chuckling, Link pulled his pencil to the fore once again, "Alright, if you truly require it. There. L, I, N, K. The only thing binding, linking together two great knights of Hyrule Kingdom."

Mipha watched him sadly as he finished returning his writing utensil to his pocket, his indifferent mood seeming to betray his words. They were so hollow, those words.

"You make your name sound like something so dreary," Mipha acknowledged softly.

Link tilted his head while shrugging, "I mean, I wouldn't call it 'dreary', I just- I was the product of a loveless matrimony. My parents, two people merely occupying the same space, and only occupying that same space between them that allowed my existence. I suppose it's odd to not have those 'family' stories, but- they both loved me. I don't begrudge them for that."

He smiled loosely, almost as if in longing, "The best thing they gave me was my fate. I know my place in this world; that's more than so many others can say."

Mipha dipped her head lowly, her heart filled with dread at this Hylian's words that sounded so empty within his emotionless candor. She turned away in thought, mulling over his words, only sparking her interest once Link began sliding the book away from her leg and fully onto his lap, her head following while he pointed to the script that already lay upon the pages there.

"See, like this story here. 'The Sword of Evil's Bane'," he quoted with a hefty voice that caught a quick smirk upon Mipha's face, "In Hyrule Castle, smack in the middle of the sanctum, there rests a sword that has remained there since as long as anybody can remember. It just lays there atop an altar, waiting for somebody to take it, but- Nobody can. If it doesn't scorch your skin, or if you're of the seedy sort, your insides begin to whirr about restlessly as you approach. I've watched it work with my own eyes."

"They say it was placed there by an ancient hero, who left it there before his passing, to remain until it's reclaimed once again by one so destined," Link continued, his voice taking on an amused air, "I'm no hero. I'm a mere knight. You know how many restless nights I've spent with wonder as to whether that blade's for me? Not a one. But everybody in my old barracks, at one point or another, racked their brains for weeks, only to be disappointed in the end."

He shrugged, "I'm a knight, and always will be. I haven't the luxury of expecting anything more than that."

Mipha's lips curled inward uncertainly before speaking, "But what about hopes? Haven't you any dreams or aspirations?"

"Nothing beyond being the best knight I can be," Link grinning, silently voicing a laugh behind clenched lips, "Which, at this moment, means I want nothing more than to do my best when it comes to protecting my Princess."

Those words sent a jolt through Mipha's body. How close he was to invoking her own visage within his mind with such a word.

"Look, why don't you go on and get your rest," Link nodded dutifully, "I'll fill out that script for you. It'll be there when you wake up, alright?"

Again, such innocent words that sent such illicit thoughts through Mipha's mind, dissipating only as she gave a disheartened, "Okay…"

She rose to her feet, smiling lightly down at the Hylian, who replied with a more stiff version of his own smile, leaving Mipha to speak up, "Thank you for…not laughing. At least not at me."

Link grinned, "I'd be far too afraid for my life were I to do such a thing."

Mipha presented her own sort of smirk as she lowered her head, her eyes just hidden beneath her frontal cleft, allowing her a stealthy glance toward the man before her. He didn't seem to mind as he prepared for his turn at the campfire's vigil, preparing his posture and grasping for his sword so that it might be handy, Mipha's lips curling with a sincere, heartfelt pang to her chest, this dutiful man doing all he could to keep her safe- well, the entire Company, but… just maybe.

"Goodnight," she muttered quietly, waiting for Link's eyes to meet hers, though they failed to do so amidst his organizing.

Still, he did offer much the same, "Goodnight. Don't let the Wabbu-Wabbu's b-"

"Oh, hush," she challenged with an amused giggle, playfully kicking at Link's side, only for him to recoil dramatically, such a childish demonstration from the man proving to be rather hopeful in Mipha's eyes.

And so she strode away, back toward her blanketed futon. While on the surface, she felt a certain lonesomeness walking along the cold earth at her feet alone, she soon began to recollect how warm Link seemed to be around her, a far cry from his interactions with Revali, at the very least, and quite a sudden change from how he seemed the last she had seen him. He had always seemed personable, and yet- He seemed so much as though there was a disconnect between him and others.

For a fleeting moment, Mipha felt, so wholeheartedly, there had been something there. Even something so imperceptible and crazy that she might have been the only one to feel it.

But it had been there.